vib_ribbon
Active member
I've taken so many photos of the arcades in Southend over the pass few years I thought I'd do a little time lapse instead at the Astro City.
Enjoy!
Enjoy!
Astro City - Southend
- Thread starter vib_ribbon
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vib_ribbon
Active member
they sell snacks, tea, coffee, drinks etc.
they are still losing money on a weekly basis even 1 year on. owner still hoping to turn things around.
they have a general tech guy there and i think they also bring in specialist help when needed.
they are still losing money on a weekly basis even 1 year on. owner still hoping to turn things around.
they have a general tech guy there and i think they also bring in specialist help when needed.
vib_ribbon
Active member
they have couches and a coffee table by the pool tables, i have seen parents come in with their kids and get their kids some 2ps to go on the penny pushers, whereas they will sit at the coffee table having a cuppa and read the papers.
you have to ask for all the drinks and snacks.
you have to ask for all the drinks and snacks.
vib_ribbon
Active member
by the way, they have a zoltar outside new york new york as well. never seen one in uk before i don't think.
"I wish I was a kid!"
"I wish I was a kid!"
Location for them is difficult, it is away from the beach and the other side of the town. They also only have a door on the ground floor which leads upstairs to a surprisingly large space. If you don't know it is there it is not something you would normally pass and even looking through the door all you see are office type stairs.
When I went they opened late so I was waiting outside for 30 mins, it was so unassuming from the outside that even with the poster on the door, the other half was saying 'are you sure this is the right place?'
Once you get through the door and up the stairs though, it is a lovely venue.
When I went they opened late so I was waiting outside for 30 mins, it was so unassuming from the outside that even with the poster on the door, the other half was saying 'are you sure this is the right place?'
Once you get through the door and up the stairs though, it is a lovely venue.
vib_ribbon
Active member
strykr said:
I've said this to Paul since day 1, and 1 year on it's still not resolved. Why are there no massive banners wrapping around the building from the windows? If you actually look a few buildings down the high street, I think there is a Burger King or a McDonalds or something, and they have a relatively large banner promoting some deals they are offering... why they can't do something similar I am not sure why. They can actually do 2 floors' worth of that to have an even bigger impact. I think they will be much more effective than the little LED scroller which is employed at the moment and probably cheaper too.
I can't agree more with you, Rich. Do you think it would be a good idea if they mounted a monitor to the downstairs window and feed their CCTV video to it to show what there is/ what's happening upstairs? If not the direct CCTV feed then have a dedicated camera feeding this monitor.
edit: in october 2013 i said this:
http://www.jammaplus.co.uk/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=52922&KW=lucky&PID=554540&title=southend-arcade-crawl-summer-2013#554540
vib_ribbon2014-08-10 19:50:00
At the very least I would have an lcd tv screen displaying a slideshow of arty photos of the arcade, so people at least know what is there, and that they arent going to get mugged at the top! And a billboard displaying upcoming events, tournaments, discounted snack and drink nights etc would be good. And some decoration on the stairways would be good too.
Whenever I go back to Southend I pop in there, and it always feels proper dodgy walking up those stairs, and im a grown man, there is no way I would want kids randomly walking up a random stairwell, i've said from the beginning that the only way this would ever work is if they tried to harvest a community of younger players with events and tournaments etc, its got to be the kind of place people want to hang out and spend money, and why forum nights havent been arranged is beyond me, the business cant rely on us old farts for sure, but most of us do have cash to spend and love meeting fellow arcadeheads.
this is all just my humble opinion, and it may seem harsh, but currently this has the best retro setup of any arcade in england and I really want it to succeed.
strykr2014-08-10 20:29:03
Whenever I go back to Southend I pop in there, and it always feels proper dodgy walking up those stairs, and im a grown man, there is no way I would want kids randomly walking up a random stairwell, i've said from the beginning that the only way this would ever work is if they tried to harvest a community of younger players with events and tournaments etc, its got to be the kind of place people want to hang out and spend money, and why forum nights havent been arranged is beyond me, the business cant rely on us old farts for sure, but most of us do have cash to spend and love meeting fellow arcadeheads.
this is all just my humble opinion, and it may seem harsh, but currently this has the best retro setup of any arcade in england and I really want it to succeed.
strykr2014-08-10 20:29:03
vib_ribbon
Active member
that's actually a much better idea than a video feed, get some cool pictures together and do a promo slideshow. you can actually incorporate a lot of these ideas into the video... slideshows, adverts for upcoming events, food/ drink pricing etc.
vib_ribbon
Active member
i went to happidrome also before hand.
all their coin mechs were having problems accepting the newer 10p coins that i was given at the booth.
i ended up getting some 50ps instead.
i played their airline pilot for the 1st time. it was quite fun. i've also started playing the big buck hunter games.
all their coin mechs were having problems accepting the newer 10p coins that i was given at the booth.
i played their airline pilot for the 1st time. it was quite fun. i've also started playing the big buck hunter games.
SEAOFWOLVES
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My wife surprised me with a trip to Southend specifically to visit this arcade a couple of weeks ago. Spent a couple of hours in there, playing Virtua Fighter 4 and SF3 3rd Strike was a lot of fun, really cool place. I second the whole stairway thing, feels a little like your gunna be stabbed until you reach the top, needs jazzing up. I really hope they make it work and can stay open!SEAOFWOLVES2014-08-12 18:01:48